Label: Wave Records
Date: November 12th, 2021
I’m nowhere near to being an expert for this. I’m not even sure I should be the one writing this. That’s how little I know about music like this. But I kind of like it. Despite everything I’m going to write down.
As far as I understood, this is a project which had spawned out of the recent lockdowns. Basically, a hyper productive mind with nothing to do. Locked behind its four walls with nothing but the thoughts to keep it company. And, as the history has thought us, it is in these situations that darkness comes creeping in. A heavy burden on the shoulders that either becomes 7 Rainbows In Exile or a suffocating force deeply impacting the whole existence of a particular human being.
The man behind this project, who dubs himself Dancing Shade, managed to let it all out within these thirty five minutes. “Twilight Gymnastics” somehow sounds just like described in the previous paragraph. My biggest problem is the heterogeneous nature of the release. It is, undoubtedly, rooted in the deepest abysses of human thought, but it swerves from one musical style to another. However, if you ever experienced loneliness and isolation in its purest form, and been exposed to your thoughts for too long, you already know that these do not come in a steady flow. Hence, this stylistic variety comes as sort of a natural thing.
There are tracks on “Twilight Gymnastics” that are spitting images of The Sisters Of Mercy. There are those that evoke The Cure, The Smiths… Gothic rock, darkwave, post-punk, post-rock… Sometimes intertwined, sometimes stripped to the bone, but always aimed at the blackest corners of the listeners psyche.
Perhaps it’s the fact that I have no idea how to “connect the dots” of the genres listed above, but I think it’s all about what you feel while listening to the record. 7 Rainbows In Exile seems to be roaming freely through a wide spectrum of musical colors, simply looking to evoke a psychological reaction within the audience. Okay, there are songs to dance to, destined for parties with your lovely gothic oriented friends. But there are also those to weep to, in the loneliness of your own confines.
The strongpoint of “Twilight Gymnastics” are the lyrics. Carefully thought through and just shy of regular poetry. However, they are wasted on occasion to a difficult to swallow vocal work. As is the case with the instrumental side of the album, vocals vary from track to track. While the deep clean voice is just fine (thinking of Andrew Eldritch here), the hoarse one is disturbing, and in all the wrong ways. It got me thinking of Love Hunters (Serbian fans will know) and that is not the right choice for me, even if I am a fan of the band.
Be that as it may, including the portrayal of the “duality” depicted on the cover, the album is just fine. It makes for an enjoyable listening, at twilight or not, though twilight may be your friend here. Anyway, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and “Twilight Gymnastics” could be the thing your goth girlfriend / boyfriend is looking for. Treat them.
